Tentative Steps
by SoullessElric
Summary: REWRITE of Broken Light / It was supposed to be a normal mission. It turned out so much more than that. He couldn't really be blind... Could he?
1. Chapter One

**_Tentative Steps _-Chapter One**

_H-hey guys...! :dodges flying objects:_

_I'm very sorry that I haven't updated anything since October... But now I have found the time to start rewriting _Broken Light_, now renamed _Tentative Steps._ I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

**( 1 )**

**-[ Infliction ]-**

_Now and again we try  
To just stay alive  
Maybe we'll turn it all around  
'Cause it's not too late  
It's never too late_

* * *

It wasn't like the guy was that strong. In fact, the more Edward Elric traded blows with him, the more obvious it became that the man was a mediocre warrior, if he was one at all. However, the fact that he was still conscious told tales of something hidden. The question was, what was it? It just might be-!

A new fist hit the Elric in the side, momentarily distracting him from his train of thought. Even if he couldn't figure out the leader, the groupies were creating quite a problem.

"Hey pipsqueak, getting tired?" A -quite tall- man asked tauntingly, grinning in the alchemist's direction as more groupies flowed around their leader.

He got unintelligible screams and a broken nose for his efforts.

Ed spun back around, facing his enemy, and who _should _have been the only one there. Damn the Bastard Colonel and his faulty information. As much as he'd hate to admit it, the taunt was true (not that he was _short, _damn it!). His breath was starting to come in small pants, and he could feel his ports getting sore from the amount of acrobatics he'd been forced into to dodge the oncoming attacks.

He blocked with his right forearm, the force of the blow pushing the port away from his side and sending him back a few steps. The Elric struck back with declining accuracy, sometimes his blade hitting a body, sometimes not.

"Brother!" Al's call was music to his ears, though he didn't dare to turn towards the echoing voice, or even to answer, for fear of becoming too distracting to defend against the onslaught. There were definitely less of them than there had been in the beginning, but it was still _too many_.

Al was making a path through the circle of enemies; an exit route for his trapped brother. Ed happily took the chance for freedom, diving behind his partner for a small respite.

His brother was like a column, not letting a single person pass behind him and slowly picking them off, one by one.

Ed gasped, taking in precious lungfuls of air and trying to retain lost energy. He knew he didn't have long when Alphonse's feet started to shuffle away from him.

It was time for some major ass-kicking.

The time spent as a victim had done some good after all. Experiencing a fighter's offensive firsthand could help you understand and predict their moves. They had all fought the same way: brute strength. Their defense was severely lacking; practically the only thing protecting them was their strength in numbers.

Now that they had dropped drastically, there would be no problems.

Edward quickly fell into a haphazard pattern of blocking and slashing, huge meaty fists flying around him, but not doing any damage anymore. He saw Al in the fray occasionally, but other than that, it was just him and the faceless people that were standing between him and his goal.

And then, suddenly, it was over. He dropped out of his fighting stance, golden eyes hardening as he turned to the leader, Kane. Terrorist and potential owner of the philosopher's stone.

Then, the lights switched off.

* * *

Alphonse knew that his brother had been outnumbered. He also knew that, even though he had been helping, his strength was dropping throughout the battle. Even though the familiar flame in his gold eyes still held strong, Al could see the small changes in his fighting style showing that he was exhausted, but refusing to believe it himself.

He'd just earned himself a reprieve, when they're all plunged into complete blackness. It was midday outside the confines of the abandoned fort just outside of Central, but the wood and steel surrounding them blocked all light from the outside.

"Brother?" He called, partially for guidance, and partially just to let him know that he was fine.

The pattering of uneven footsteps answered his call. Al listened for a few moments, before realizing that the footsteps were running perpendicular to the path needed to get to him.

He was confused, until he remembered.

Kane.

Silence had fallen. It seemed that all of the fighters were at a standstill.

It hadn't occurred to him that the lights had absolutely _no reason_ to suddenly shut off, and that, maybe, it had been on purpose.

He caught on as Ed's startled yelp cut through the peace. Then, the only sounds were those of his armor clanking, and of metal cutting into skin.

Alchemy flashed, and with the small glow it had created, Alphonse saw his brother -wait, was that blood on him?- create a small box of earth around himself. Kane circled the box, his messy fighting skills from earlier seeming to disappear with the light.

Al was almost upon the man, when more alchemy flashed -red this time- and the rock protecting Ed came crashing in on him. He heard his brother swear as he struggled out of the rubble, trying to shake off the rock holding him down.

_If _he had been paying attention, he would have noticed that Kane's alchemy was different. _If _he hadn't been so preoccupied before then, he would have seen Kane draw what looked to be claws out of his thick gloves. And, _if _he hadn't been so _damn tired, _he would be winning.

Sadly, he was not.

He could hear the metal of his left leg creaking as the heavy earth pressed down on it. He had made sure to make the barrier thick, strong enough to withstand most attacks. In his panic, he hadn't considered that this could quite easily work against him. Thus, he was stuck.

Edward could hear Al's armor clanking as he tried to fight, but no sounds of metal hitting flesh followed. Just the screech of Kane's "claws" as they raked uselessly across the armor. The cuts in his arm burned just thinking about it.

But, no, he had to focus. This pain was nothing.

With a grunt, the alchemist brought his hands together and twisted behind him to slap a palm onto the rock pinning him to the ground. Lightning ran along the surface as the rock broke apart and became a familiar spear.

Trying to figure out where Al and Kane were, he shifted nervously, focusing on the retreating sounds of battle. Right...? No, left. He faced where he thought the fighters were, and opened his mouth.

"Al!" He called, "Go find the lights! I'll deal with Kane."

There was peace for a few seconds, then Kane was upon him. Ed swung his spear in the direction of the footsteps, wherever they were, trying to get a hit in before he was within striking distance.

He didn't hit anything, but his attempts kept the attacker away, a small comfort. He could only hope that Al found the lights soon...

That was the last thought he was able to make before Kane's now bare hand slammed into his face, and the crackle of alchemy rang through the silence.

Everything stopped.


	2. Chapter Two

**_Tentative Steps –_ Chapter Two**

_So I kinda started getting ideas for this chapter while listening to music late at night, and decided that I wanted to start writing this finally, since my summer is running out. I'm typing in my iPhone though, so it's slow going. :headdesk:_

_**Edit: **It's a couple days later, and I finally finished it! Yes! Those of you following me will know that this is my third chapter posted in three days. I feel so accomplished.  
_

_Special thanks to **LucyLu71958**, **terrynow**, and **FlamingFlyingFoxOfDoom** for reviewing!  
_

_Oh well, on with the show!_

* * *

**( 2 )**

**-[ Glimpses ]-**

_Dead wrong to ever doubt you  
But my demons lay in waiting  
Tempting me away_

* * *

"You have _got _to be kidding me!" an enraged voice filled the otherwise quiet office, each of it's occupants feverishly working under the threat of a gleaming gun at their supervisor's hip. A few briefly glanced at the door separating their workspace from their superior's before quickly turning back to the papers on their desks.

Inside the other room, things were much less organized, thanks to a certain someone who had knocked over a towering stack of the Colonel's paperwork.

"It took me _ages _to sort all of this out!" Mustang groaned, glaring at the Major before him.

"What did you _expect _would happen? It's like a damn maze in here!" the snarky blond replied, making no move to assist the man as he bent down to shuffle the papers back into what might have passed for a pile.

"_It is not_, and it's not my fault anyways! Goddamn paperwork..."

Oh the _tragedy_.

There was an awkward pause in the conversation where both participants chose to communicate their dislike of each other through heated glares rather than screaming insults.

"What am I here for anyways?" Edward asked, sustaining his glare for as long as possible.

Deeming himself above such childish contests, Mustang folded his hands and started the briefing.

"There's a new group of terrorists about a mile from the west side of Central. They're trying to force the idea that only pureblood Amestrians should be allowed within the country, but their group isn't large enough to do any real damage currently. Now, your part in all this-"

"Is to head over there and kick their asses. Got it." Ed interrupted, seeming completely bored with the whole situation.

"No."

The blond alchemist lifted an eyebrow.

"What I was about to say is that you're going to keep them from getting new recruits. We can't have them raising their numbers, but we also can't have you bursting in there and scaring them out of our sights again."

The Colonel shuffled through a closer pile of paper, before pulling out a folder.

"This is the information we have on their leader, Icarus Kane. I suggest you review it, then do what you can to prevent them from growing. You are dismissed."

Edward smirked as he grabbed the file and turned to leave.

"Yeah, Colonel Bastard. See ya." he tossed over his shoulder as he let out a little wave.

"And Fullmetal?"

"What?" he asked, exasperated, but not quite irritated enough to turn back around.

"You fall under the category of 'unclean' for them. Just be careful, alright?"

(_Burning, searing pain, and it wouldn't stop._)

He stood still for a moment, before striding out without another word.

(_There was nothing. Absolutely nothing except him and the other person._

_But then metal was shattering, and somehow, there was someone else there._)

* * *

"Hey Al?" Ed called, speech slightly garbled due to the sandwich he was currently eating.

"Yes Brother?" Alphonse replied, looking across the cafe table they were both sitting at, one with more difficulty than the other.

"Have you ever heard of this Icarus person?"

"No, and you shouldn't talk with food in your mouth."

"Yeah, whatever," He had the grace to swallow this time, "But really, doesn't this whole thing seem a little sudden?"

"I guess, why?"

"Doesn't it seem strange that he was holding back until now? I've heard rumors of the group, but they didn't start trying to grow until Kane showed up."

If Alphonse could have smiled, there would be an evil smirk plastered across his face.

"And since when do _you_ read your reports?"

Ed glared in irritation, taking another bite before answering, "Since _never_, I didn't read the damn thing. It takes too long and ultimately doesn't have any useful information in it. I learned this stuff from an innkeeper a couple towns back."

Alphonse sighed inwardly, he would be looking the file over that night.

(_All his fault._

_They were both alone, each night. One trapped within his own terror, the other unable to enter it. He was sure that the other blamed him. Nothing he said could change his mind._

_They were both trapped in the black, and no amount of lies about how each was okay would make it better._

_Neither could stop._)

* * *

"Trust me."

Those were the deadly words that graced his older brother's lips. Alphonse trusted his brother, but maybe he shouldn't have.

(_Purple light engulfed the two, both screaming as they were ripped from this world._

_It wasn't supposed to be like this._)

Alphonse was supposed to catch his brother's mistakes, make sure they didn't both suffer when all odds were against them. But they both trusted each other far too much for their own good.

Thus, Alphonse caved when his brother tried to convince him that they could get the job done that night.

(_They were sure that this lead was going somewhere. And if not this one, then certainly the next. There were so many answers to explore, so many starts that could lead to the right outcome._

_They just had to keep searching._)

"I have a good feeling about this one, Al."

The suit of armor looked down towards his companion as they walked through the darkened streets of Central, heading towards the warehouse containing the terrorists.

"Mm," Al answered, a neutral sound of confirmation escaping the metal, echoing a bit on the way.

Both settled into a companionable, but slightly awkward silence, the silence only being broken by a distant siren and two pairs of footsteps.

Wait, make that three.

Ed shoved his hands in his pockets, hiding them from the chilly autumn air, the cold only strengthened by the cliche shadowed alley to their left.

It was then that the footsteps stopped, and Hell broke loose.

(_Make it stop make it stop make it stopmakeitstopmakeitstop-!_

_Get out of my head!_)

It was just one person, dressed entirely in shabby brown clothing, but the glint of a dagger could clearly be seen in his hand as he lunged for the smaller of the two.

The clang of metal sounded as the blade was blocked by a metal forearm, the metal cracking slightly under the concentrated force of the blow.

"Damn it, Winry's gonna kill me for this!" Ed shouted angrily, turning towards the attacker with fire in his eyes. All three took on varied fighting stances, until the unknown man made his move first.

(_No._)

Alphonse kicked out at where the man had been standing, losing his balance slightly and making it possible for the man to push him over. One down, and the real fight hadn't even started.

Neither could deny it, they were fighting sloppily. Each time Ed swiped with his recently transmuted blade, the man would dodge the blow with large movements, then go after the teen moments afterwards, who would do the same things.

On some levels, they were testing each other before engaging in the full-blown battle.

It was the man who broke the pattern first, breaking away after one last, failed, stab and sprinting away from the pair.

"Oh no you don't!"

Both brothers followed close behind, leaving confused citizens looking down out their windows.

(_You're finished, give it up. Fighting will only hurt more._

_Is that the truth, then?_)

The man was surprisingly resilient to both Elrics' attacks, dodging or blocking with that puny knife of his. Edward was slowly getting excited for a challenge.

He grinned as he lunged once more, heading his attack with a left hook and following up with a sweeping kick that should have floored a man of his size. But the man danced away, legs carrying himself in taunting circles around his enemies.

Alphonse was quickly losing concentration as he tried to keep an eye on his brother and the man at the same time. He found himself stumbling through his attacks, and finally tripped as he overshot a lunge towards the enemy.

His armor clanged to the ground, the helmet still flying towards the man, hitting him in the chin and sending him backwards just long enough for Ed to knock the knife from his hand and dart backwards.

Out of the silence, a bitter laugh sounded.

"You think you've _won_?" the man laughed, torso shaking in his mirth. Seeming completely relaxed, the man reached for his knife.

"Stop it!" Ed shouted, moving towards the man.

Two blades were resting against their wielders' necks, both staring intensely at the other, daring them to make the first move. Alphonse stood up and slipped into a well practiced fighting stance, ready to jump to his brother's side once he life wasn't being threatened.

"You think you can even make a _dent _in our group? Ha! I find you amusing, State Alchemist!" The man chuckled again, "We've found our power, and it's stronger than you could even imagine!"

"Skip the cliche bad guy speech and get on with it!" Ed growled, pressing slightly on the man's neck.

The man sighed and leaned toward the shorter male, seeming not to be concerned about the threatening situation at all.

"Red lightning..." He whispered into Ed's ear, then sprang back with the agility of a cat. Ed flinched back in surprise, giving the man the precious seconds that allowed him to escape. Frustrated, Edward slashed at the air in front of him and hissed profanities to no one in particular.

"_'Red lightning'_?! What kind of half-assed hint is _that_?!" He shouted as he transmuted the plate on his fore-arm to its normal shape. He blinked, and looked down at the arm.

"Alchemy..." He whispered.

"Brother, do you think he might have a Philosopher's Stone?" Alphonse asked hesitantly, still staring at the spot the man had vacated.

Ed turned towards him with a grin on his face, "Al, we need to go look at that file."

* * *

He opened his eyes.

Or, at least, he _thought_ he did.


	3. Chapter Three

**_Tentative Steps –_ Chapter Three**

_NO. WAY. Two updates in one day?! Something must've gone wrong with logic..._

_Anyway, I had a lot of fun with this chapter. It's not my best work, and the last scene I accidentally wrote in first person, so I had to spend a good five minutes changing it back to third. :laughs: __The thesaurus was my best friend when I wrote this. :grins:_ It's so short though... Oh well.  


_I find it profoundly WRONG that I wrote most of the last scene while listening to Starships by Nicki Minaj.  
_

_Special thanks to **FlamingFlyingFoxofDoom **for reviewing the last chapter!_

* * *

**( 3 )**

**-[ Futile ]-**

_We think we're walking home  
But you can't go there unless it wants you  
You can stand on the streets  
But still the destination haunts you  
Is that where you are now?_

* * *

The hospital waiting room was silent. Only a couple people were scattered among the uncomfortable chairs, and all of them were too tense to talk. "Stiff" was really the only way to describe the atmosphere.

The quiet was broken as the door opened, and a military officer walked in, looking slightly disheveled.

"How is he?" the man asked, looking at his blonde subordinate with concerned black eyes.

"Sir, his condition isn't critical, but he hasn't gained consciousness yet." the woman answered, standing tall and straight.

"At ease, Lieutenant, we're not at work right now."

At this point, the pair were starting to attract strange looks from the other occupants of the room. They both sat down and silence reigned for a while, only broken when the doctors would call in a visitor occasionally.

Finally, they were called in. As the hospital room door closed behind them, it felt like the situation had been finalized. There was no way to deny the reality of what was happening.

* * *

He was so very confused. There was nothing there, but there was supposed to be. Trapped in the inky black void, he couldn't move.

He couldn't wake up either.

The stone was there, blood red and shining with a taunting light.

But he couldn't even reach for it.

Soulless eyes stared at him, red light from the Philosopher's Stone reflecting off of the deep amber irises. The rest of the body formed around him, caressing the frozen skin. _Help me! _his mind screamed at the boy in front of him.

"Goodbye, worthless brother of mine."

Suddenly, the void was gone. He was under a tree, the leaves throwing dappled shade onto the brown blanked tucked around his body. He was 11 again, crippled and stuck in the wheelchair. In front of him, he saw Alphonse, alive and whole, and staring at him with a genuine, warm smile. His mother was there too, crouched in front of him and holding his hand.

He looked up to stare at her jerkily, gripping her hand tighter.

"Mom..."

"Shh, Honey, I'll be back soon. Be a good boy while I'm gone, alright?"

"But-"

She turned and fell, her body crumbling into ashes. The hand she had just been holding lay loose in its owners lap, the boy too horrified to pull it back towards him.

"_Mom_!" Alphonse screamed, and ran towards where she collapsed. Edward couldn't follow.

He fisted the grass, the ashes running through his fingers, before his tears turned to those of anger, and he rounded on his brother.

"How _could you_?!" He shrieked, pulling Ed up by the front of his shirt.

"It's your fault, _all of it's _because of _you_! Useless!"

A single tear fled down Ed's cheek.

* * *

The once still body in the pristine hospital bed moved, his left arm moving up to his chest and turning slightly to the side. His head started to toss, eyes squeezed tightly shut. A small groaning sound escaped the open lips, drawing the attention of the two individuals in the room.

"No, n-no..." The blond teen whimpered, his body starting to curl in towards itself.

Both of them knew about Edward's nightmares, but it seemed wrong somehow to actually witness one, like they were invading his privacy. They both settled deeper into the comfortable silence they had created, trying to ignore the twitching boy.

"Alphonse..."

Both of them had expected it. That didn't change how haunting it was.

"I-it's not like... that..."

The teen started thrashing, only to be halted by the Colonel's grip on his upper arms. In response to the person holding him down, his movements became more frantic.

"Fullmetal. C'mon, wake up!"

* * *

"Alphonse...!"

"_NO_! Shut up, shut up, you can't do anything!" he screeched, "_You can't fix me_!"

He shoved Ed back down and ran out from under the shade of the tree.

"No! Don't leave!" Ed screamed desperately.

He was already gone.

"_Useless, useless, useless."_

There was someone shaking him.

"_Go away, I can't help you..."_

The shaking continued. Someone was calling his title, his name.

"_Go away, leave me alone..."_

"Fullmetal!"

"_Just go away..."_

"Wake up!"

Wearily, he forced his eyes open. Wait, did he? Was he still in the dream?

"Fullmetal, you awake yet?"

No, that wasn't it. He blinked, once, twice, but nothing changed. His face scrunched into what he thought was a confused expression.

"Mustang... Why's it so dark in here?"

He felt the hand resting on his arm tighten.

His mind was racing, trying to puzzle out the situation he was faced with. He couldn't still be in the warehouse, he felt sheets surrounding him. It felt to real to be a dream. He propped himself up on one elbow and glanced around, trying to find any source of light.

"Fullmetal, the lights are on. It's not anywhere _near_ dark in here."

He raised an eyebrow.

"This is a prank, right?"

Silence met his question.

"_Right_?!"

"Edward, this isn't a prank. It's not dark." Hawkeye said seriously.

Hawkeye could've been in on it too, but she didn't seem like the type to keep something like this up. Why would they do it now, also? It just didn't make sense. But, if it wasn't a prank...

"Th-then," Ed swallowed, "Why can't I see...?"

_Useless._

"Fullmetal..." Mustang's somber voice dropped in volume.

Ed brought a hand to the side of his head, gripping the loose hair and shaking his head fervently.

"No, _no_."

His wide, unseeing eyes were pinned to the sheet below him. This _couldn't be _happening.

"No, I can't be-" Ed cut off, worrying at his lip, feeling the skin slowly start to rip.

_You can't do anything._

Wait. There was something wrong, something missing...

"Where's Alphonse...?" he asked.

No one answered.

"Where is he?!" Ed shouted, sitting up the rest of the way, ignoring his aching body.

"Fullm- Edward," Mustang corrected himself, "Alphonse is missing."

_You can't fix me._


End file.
